October 2017 Cost Connections

Gone are the sunny days of summer 2017. With winter just around the corner, our attention can turn once again to the business of quantity surveying at the national, regional and local levels.

On the national front, I attended the first CIQS meeting since I was elected President of Prairies & NWT, held September 29-30 in Markham. The meeting included several points of interest for all CIQS members.

As you know from recent updates sent from National, CIQS Chair Matt Weber resigned the chair after about a year in the position. Many of you will know Matt through his work with CIQS and also from his career position as Vice-President of Concosts out of Vancouver. Please join me in thanking Matt for his service to CIQS and wishing him all the best in his future endeavours. David Dooks has assumed the role of Chair from his former position of Vice-Chair.

National is working on a number of initiatives that affect all designation holders. These include a call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the CIQS Education Director position on the Board and a call for interest to revise the Method of Measurement book. Please consider throwing your hat in the ring for either of these opportunities. Having a Prairies & NWT member working on National initiatives would underline the strength of our affiliate and give the National Board the benefit of our western- and northern-based knowledge. Please watch for further communication on these opportunities from CIQS.

Work continues on the CIQS marketing and advocacy front. CIQS has had more promotional videos produced to educate the public and prospective members on our profession with more to come from the exciting PAQS conference hosted in Vancouver this summer. CIQS is continuing its advocacy for members and is in the process of contracting a lobbying firm to promote CIQS designation holders.

I'm sure everyone saw the updates regarding the proposed CIQS governance restructuring. FAQs have been sent out based on feedback received to date, as well as a survey asking your opinions about the proposed restructuring. I would encourage all designation holders to review both documents and to respond to the survey to ensure their opinions are heard.

On the regional front, I am very pleased with the full slate of events being planned in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg as our Chapter reps are full steam ahead with planning current fall and winter events. The slate of events includes our first Edmonton presentation and tour in quite some time, thanks to the efforts of Tom Tamayo, our new Edmonton Chapter rep. I know Tom has some great ideas, so stay tuned for further announcements.

Do you have feedback to offer on any CIQS issue or questions I can help answer? Email me anytime, and I commit to getting back to you as quickly as my schedule allows.

Sincerely,

Michael Gabert
President

Tom Tamayo: meet your Edmonton Chapter Rep

Career paths are interesting things. You never know what roads you will travel in your journey to secure a fulfilling career that offers you and your family the quality of life you want.

Tom Tamayo, Cost Manager at Alberta Infrastructure, began his QS career path in his homeland of the Philippines where he successfully completed a civil engineering degree. Cost estimating was part of his university studies.

For Tom, the decision to pursue a career in engineering came easily. “My high school grades clearly showed my preference for maths and sciences,” he explains. “I like dealing with numbers!”

After he graduated and got his feet wet in the engineering profession, Tom worked from May 1996 to February 2004 with one of the biggest international cost consulting firms, Davis Langdon, as a quantity surveyor in the Philippines and Brunei. His eight-year stint in Brunei gave him the rich opportunity of learning the Malay language.

That year, 2004, was a turning point for Tom, his wife and his tiny son. They immigrated to Canada and began a new life. “We looked for countries that accept permanent residency and, eventually, citizenship. We both have families in the U.S. but it’s very difficult to attain U.S. citizenship so we looked to Canada.”

Canada has proven a great choice for Tom and his family.

“We like Canada so much that if only we had been given the choice, we should have been born here! We have come to like winter, for some reason, better than the summer heat we grew up with in the Philippines. We feel we really can’t survive with the heat in the Philippines anymore. We can find ways to make ourselves warm enough in the winter, but in the Philippine summers you absolutely need air conditioning. You feel you are barbecued all the time.”

Tom and his family’s first experience in Canada was in Toronto where he joined Turner & Townsend as Cost Consultant in October 2004.

It was there Tom came to understand and appreciate some of the values Canadians hold dear. “That year was a milestone for me. I got the job with Turner & Townsend, and so many of my colleagues including Marcos Sibal gave me tremendous support,” Tom recalls. “They also encouraged me to join CIQS and start my course requirements to earn my PQS.”

Tom completed all his PQS subject requirements at George Brown College and was awarded his PQS designation during the historic CIQS 50th anniversary celebrations in Toronto.

“I didn’t find the PQS process particularly tough because I was already working in the consulting industry. For someone working as, say, in manufacturing or the service industry, it would be tougher. The most challenging part for me was conforming to the Canadian requirements.”

The process was also eased for Tom because of a good friend and mentor of his – David Lai, long-time senior CIQS member in Toronto. “David was – and remains - a perfect mentor. He gave me a good grasp on the background of what he was doing in those early years when I was in Toronto. He still visits me in Alberta and keeps on encouraging me. David actually endorsed me to executive members of the Prairies affiliate when I moved to Alberta from Toronto.”

Tom made the move west in early 2013 with his family, which now includes two sons. “I received offers from Alberta when I was in Toronto. You want to keep moving up the career ladder, so I made the move.”

He joined Altus Group as Senior Cost Consultant in January 2013 and remained in that position until he joined Alberta Infrastructure in August 2015 as Cost Manager. “It’s hard to believe I’ve been in quantity surveying for over 20 years!”

Tom chose to accept the position of CIQS Prairies & NWT Edmonton Chapter rep as a way to help his professional association while getting to know the Edmonton Chapter members better. “Since I arrived in Alberta in 2013, I’ve noticed the level of activity in Calgary . . . and the lack of activity in Edmonton. I’d love to get some feedback from Edmonton members on the types of activities they would find helpful – from hearing the latest on market trends to finding other resources they may find useful in their careers.”

Tom met Jerry Crawford, Calgary Chapter rep, when he worked in Toronto, and sees the great job Jerry has done to offer Calgary members some meaningful professional development opportunities. He would like to do the same for Edmonton.

Get in touch, Edmonton!

(1) Sign up today for the Nov. 9 Edmonton International Airport (EIA) presentation and tour. Find out what’s new with the EIA masterplan development – and some of the in’s and out’s of related operational and maintenance costs.

(2) Got some ideas on continuing education sessions – or social get-togethers – that you would welcome? Get in touch with Tom!

CIQS Prairies & NWT Board member Sudhir Jha has been awarded the 2017 NWT Outstanding Volunteer Award (Individual Category) because of his tireless volunteer efforts to improve the NWT quality of life by helping to build sustainable, vibrant and safe communities. I am humbled and grateful to all who supported my professional and volunteer works.

The award was presented in May by Hon. Caroline Cochrane, NWT Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Sudhir’s volunteer work focuses on organizations dedicated to helping Northern youth develop their life and career skills, organizations helping new Canadians and those highlighting careers in engineering or the sciences.

He has devoted hundreds of hours to Skills Canada NWT as a member and a member of the Board. The organization promotes careers in skilled trades and technologies to Northern youth. Also to show young people the challenges and opportunities that a career in engineering or a related skilled field bring, Sudhir has led a bridge building competition for youth and has dedicated many hours to facilitating codes workshops with students.

Another major focus for Sudhir since 2015 has been the Computer for Schools (CFS) program to ensure Northern youth and many adults as well have access to modern technology. The CFS program is operated by the Smart Communities Society.

Other youth-oriented volunteer efforts for Sudhir have included bringing rocks and mineral kits to schools, volunteering with the Yellowknife Day Care Association, working with the annual Power Up Youth Conference and during Fire Prevention Week.

In addition to volunteering in many Northern communities, Sudhir is also active in many professional organizations related to engineering. Sudhir is Manager, Community Infrastructure Planning for the NWT Department of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Industry Update

Edmonton leads transition to low carbon future

According to the Canadian Property Management REMI Network website, Edmonton’s movement toward greenhouse gas emissions reduction is due in large part to the city’s building energy benchmarking program.

An article by Lisa Dockman, the City’s Senior Environmental Project Manager, says commercial and residential buildings account for 42% of the energy consumed and 40% of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Edmonton. As a result, energy efficiency and reducing GHG emissions in commercial buildings is a critical component of Edmonton’s transition to a low carbon, sustainable energy future.

Building energy benchmarking programs are a common approach that has led to improved building energy efficiency and reduced GHG emissions in more than 20 North American cities. These programs provide building owners and managers with a measure of their building’s performance and allow for comparisons with other buildings. This informs changes to building operations and can facilitate energy retrofits resulting in energy savings. Energy benchmarking programs provide annual, accurate building data allowing for a tailored approach to energy efficiency – further supporting climate targets and stimulating market transformation.

There is a well-established body of research supporting the economic benefits of benchmarking and subsequent energy retrofits. Investments in energy efficiency have been shown to lead to an increase in rental fees and that energy efficient buildings attract higher rental fees than less efficient buildings. Evidence is also growing that the competitive advantages of green buildings translate into higher overall value in the marketplace and higher sales prices.

Edmonton’s Building Energy Benchmarking program uses utility consumption data provided by building owners and property managers to generate and share energy performance metrics with participants. Annual energy consumption information is collected from large buildings including commercial, light industrial, municipal, institutional, mixed-use and multi-unit residential buildings (typically targeting those greater than 20,000 square feet) and the information is used to benchmark building energy performance across Edmonton’s large building stock.

It also informs energy efficiency improvements in buildings through an information-action feedback loop with program participants. The long-term goal is to have all large buildings in Edmonton participate annually.

Edmonton’s Building Energy Benchmarking program is a critical element of city’s strategic objective to reduce energy use in buildings. The program is aligned with energy-related strategic planning initiatives at all levels of government and is especially impactful in Alberta where electricity is primarily generated by burning carbon-intensive fossil fuels and where energy efficiency leads to significant greenhouse gas reductions.

Edmonton is the first Canadian municipality to host a building energy benchmarking initiative and is committed to having 20 City-owned buildings, including City Hall, participate in the first year of the pilot program.

Edmonton large building owners and property managers are invited to sign up to participate in this voluntary pilot by reporting their energy usage for 2016 to the City of Edmonton using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. Participants will benefit from technical support, customized building benchmarking reports, tenant education workshops and financial incentives of up to $1,500/building to offset commercial energy auditing costs.

GPRO coming to Alberta

GPRO, CaGBC's green building training for the trades, makes its debut in Alberta – in Calgary – in late November with a two-day training session focusing on mechanical and HVAC.

GPRO, the acronym for Green Professional Building Skills Training, is a comprehensive national training and certificate program that will give people who build, renovate and maintain buildings the preparation to work in accordance with new regulations and to meet the expectations of owners and tenants who want healthier, environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient homes and buildings.

The program is a happy consequence of the tremendous, and continuing, growth of Canada’s green building industry.

A recent CaGBC research report, Green Building in Canada: Assessing the Market Impacts & Opportunities, concluded that in 2014, the green building industry was estimated to have employed 297,890 direct full-time workers in Canada and generated approximately $23.45 billion in GDP. Of those jobs, the construction and trades sector accounted for 55%, equivalent to approximately 164,445 jobs.

I do a fair number of presentations, and I always ask the question: “What is the cheapest form of energy?” Invariably, I get answers including nuclear, wind, solar and even hydro, but people often overlook the most obvious one – the “negawatt.” A negawatt is the energy you don't use, and is the lowest-hanging fruit of all energy conservation methods ( ECMs).

Our company follows three simple tenets of energy:

Understand it.

Reduce it.

Produce it.

Recently the Government of Alberta released its new BNI program, offering substantial rebates for LED lighting retrofits for Business, Non-profits, and Institutions. These rebates are applicable on most types of lighting within your business, both indoors and out, and not only reduce the amount of energy being consumed by as much as 80% but offer an incidental benefit – a reduction in heat (and thus cooling costs).

In addition, you’ll also enjoy longer-lasting lighting and fewer failures. LED lighting offers better lumen maintenance and doesn't decay nearly as quickly as incandescent, LPS, fluorescent or other nearly obsolete lighting technologies. More lumens for longer periods means fewer replacement costs for an even better return on investment.

The rebates, as mentioned earlier, take a real bite out of the capital cost of your retrofit and are applied either by product type or the amount of lumens they produce. For example, replacing a 400w metal halide high bay light (458w total with the ballast) can be achieved with a 120w LED at about 15,650 lumens, ($140 rebate) but if you step it up to a 155w retrofit (about 20,150 lumens) your rebate jumps to $200. It’s also important to note the criteria for lighting is that it must be cUL/cETL approved for use in Canada and also bear the DLC (Design Light Consortium) or Energy Star certification.

A good supplier always ensures the lights qualify, understands where you consume energy and has a good grasp on the rebate amounts. Beware of travelling salesmen from afar trying to cash in on the new rebates; simply make sure you ask the right questions. More information on the BNI Rebate program can be found at: www.efficiencyalberta.ca/business-non-profit-and-institutional.

International solar power successes

Canada has set some ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets. While we’ve made some strides, we have a long way to go with our own targets and in comparison with the successes other countries have achieved.

Germany, which has considerably less sunshine than Canada, has 1.7 million solar systems owned by German citizens. This has resulted in a carbon emissions decrease of 22% since 1990. Nearly one-third of Germany’s electricity comes from clean energy, creating 370,000 jobs.

The city of Coimbatore, in south India, has an uninterrupted 24/7 power supply coming from 2.5 million solar panels covering 2,500 acres. These panels have a capacity of 648 MW and provide electricity to 150,000 homes.

India is setting up another solar park in the deserts of Jagasthan that will generate 10,000 MW of solar power.

CaGBC’s Retrofit Roadmap for Canada

The Canada Green Building Council has just released a nationwide strategy, the Roadmap for Retrofits in Canada, to reduce carbon emissions from existing buildings. The report details the issue of greenhouse gas emissions from large buildings – the magnitude of the current problem and recommendations to retrofit large buildings that will contribute to achieving a reduction in GHG emissions of at least 30% (or 12.5 million tonnes) by 2030, with the potential to reach 51 per cent or 21.2 million tonnes.

Amber Trails Community School in Winnipeg and the De Waal Net Zero House in Edmonton were two of the nine award winners.

Jurist comments about the Amber Trails Community School:

This project encourages social interaction and community engagement through the physical organization of its multiple programs. Operating before and after regular school hours increases the efficiency of building use, while energy and water consumption reductions of close to 70% are remarkable. Programs such as the community farm raise awareness around broader aspects of sustainability. A community school in the truest sense.

Jurist comments about the De Wall Net Zero House:

A commendable example of environmentally responsible densification, that is both gentle in its addition of a secondary suite, and transferable in its use of off-the-shelf technology and local labour. The project achieves its net zero ambitions in a holistic way, exploiting passive solar orientation and creating a highly insulated and airtight building envelope before adding photovoltaic panels for make-up energy. Water conservation and material selection strategies are also commendable.

World’s first double LEED Platinum building (REMI Network, Canadian Property Management, Oct. 11) – The Vancouver Convention Centre (VCC) has earned LEED v4 Existing Building Platinum, becoming the first double LEED Platinum convention centre in the world, and the first v4 Platinum Existing Building project to certify in Canada.

OHS and WCB Reviews Have Alberta’s Construction Associations Concerned (Alberta Construction website, Oct. 10) – Over the past year the Government of Alberta has been working towards a total overhaul of the legislation surrounding employers and workers. Reviews and legislation from employment standards, to Worker’s Compensation Board (WCB), to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) are coming thick and fast. The WCB and OHS Reviews in particular will reduce funds employers use to grow jobs and ensure safer worksites. Additionally, many of the proposed changes erode the collaborative role of employers as foundational partners in developing safer jobsites for workers.

Alberta renews green discounts (The Globe and Mail.com, Sept. 29) – The Alberta government is launching a second round of discounts on energy-efficient products after the initial round proved wildly successful.

PAW Centre more than U of A students' home away from home (Edmonton Journal, Sept. 29) – As if to metaphorically warm up for its daily experience of intense activity, the sleek metal frame stretches high above the cement walkway, as its towering glass wall reflects the vibrancy of the bustling university neighbourhood.

Alberta town looks to abandoned gas well for a new kind of energy (The Globe and Mail.com, Sept. 27) – An Alberta town is planning to pull a different kind of energy from the abandoned oil and gas wells that ring its outskirts. Hinton, west of Edmonton on the edge of the Rocky Mountains, is teaming up with academic researchers and the private sector to install what may be Canada's first geothermal heating system in its downtown core.

Calgary's mid-rise developments sharpen their design edge (The Globe and Mail, Aug. 25) – A growing population of downsizers, young professionals and urban families in Calgary's inner-city neighbourhoods are driving demand for mid-rise developments where the convenience of condo life is coupled with cutting-edge architecture, human scale and a sense of community.

Edmonton leads transition to low carbon future (REMI Network, Canadian Property Management, Aug. 24) – Commercial and residential buildings account for 42 per cent of the energy consumed and 40 per cent of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Edmonton. As a result, energy efficiency and reducing GHG emissions in commercial buildings is a critical component of Edmonton’s transition to a low carbon, sustainable energy future.

Urban design in the time of climate change: making a friend of floods (The Globe and Mail, July 7) — How do you design a flood-proof city? You don’t. How do you prepare for extreme weather in the era of climate change? You let the water come. That’s the approach that landscape architects and other designers are taking to address the threat of flooding in urban areas: designing cityscapes that are designed to absorb water; and riverfronts and lakefronts that are meant to get wet.